There has been a surge in research on gender and sexuality in the last decade, which has predominantly focused on discrimination, dysphoria, and disparities. And much of what we hear in the news about issues relating to gender and sexuality is deeply negative, with seemingly endless attacks on people who are marginalized by their gender and/or sexuality--attacks that are both physical and political. While such issues are extremely important, this one-sided focus casts the experience of minoritized people as intrinsically negative. A deficit model implies the best one can hope for is to avoid negative outcomes, which limits the possibilities of authentic gender and sexual identity and expression, intimate connection, and personal and professional success. We need more nuanced and methodologically rigorous approaches to understanding resiliency and wellbeing within minoritized groups, including women, queer (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual, asexual, demisexual), and transgender and gender diverse people. If all we ever hear about the experiences of minoritized people is pain, we diminish the strength of these communities and the richness of their humanity. When we expand our view to include the positive, we reclaim humanity--not to mention, strengthen our science by developing theories and conducting research that address the incredible range of human experience around gender and sexuality. The 70th Annual Nebraska Symposium on Motivation focused on understanding resiliency, joy, pleasure and well-being in women, queer folks and gender-diverse people. In bringing together a diverse international and interdisciplinary group of scholars and scientists, we created a space to explore joy, to break with narratives of deficiency, and honor wellbeing with the same scientific vigor and rigor as we give to pain. The chapters of this volume represent this effort, all centered on the question: What would it look like if your field of study--the study of gender and sexuality--truly centered wellbeing and resilience as the foundation of theory and research?
Tierney Lorenz (she/they) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology and the Center for Brain, Biology and Behavior at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. They received their Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Texas at Austin in 2013 after completing an internship at the University of Washington School of Medicine. They completed their postdoctoral work at the Kinsey Institute and the Center for the Integrative Study of Animal Behavior at Indiana University. Dr. Lorenz's research examines the interaction between mental, physical and sexual health in women and gender-diverse people. Their lab investigates the ways that sexual behavior impacts immune and endocrine function, as well as ways to help patients with mental and physical health conditions have happy, healthy sexual lives. They also focus on helping survivors of sexual trauma through basic science and clinical research.
Deb Hope received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University at Albany-State University of New York in 1990 and joined UNL in the same year. Her current research interests follow two broad themes: (a) assessment and treatment of anxiety disorders (particularly social anxiety disorder) and (b) the impact of stigma and discrimination on mental health and health services, particularly for individuals who identify as transgender, lesbian, gay, or bisexual. Her work on psychopathology emphasizes information processing models that describe the role of attention and memory in social anxiety disorder and the impact of these cognitive processes on interpersonal functioning. Dr. Hope also has ongoing research on both the outcome and process of psychotherapy, with a most recent emphasis on using technology to make evidence-based treatment more available, especially in underserved rural areas. The LGBT line of research is examining how stigma and discrimination impact mental health. Her current major collaborative effort is Trans Collaborations, a community-based participatory research group focused on reducing health disparities for individuals who identify as transgender or gender diverse and reside in areas with few specialty resources.
Kathryn Holland (she/her) is an Associate Professor of Psychology and Women's & Gender Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She earned her Ph.D. in Psychology and Women's Studies from the University of Michigan in 2017 and her B.A. in Applied Psychology from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2008. Her research investigates how people's health and wellbeing are influenced by their social environments, with a focus on formal support systems, interpersonal processes, and social norms. She is primarily interested in well-being related to people's experiences of sexual assault and sexual health, particularly for those who are marginalized by gender and/or sexuality (e.g., women and LGBTQ+ communities). For example, she studies the implementation, use, and effectiveness of formal support systems for sexual assault in higher education. She also examines how social norms around gender and sexuality affect women's sexual health.
